


Just a Chance of Better Days

by Lizardbeth



Category: Jeremiah (TV)
Genre: Gen, Holiday, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-12-23
Updated: 2009-12-23
Packaged: 2017-10-05 01:21:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,101
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/36207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lizardbeth/pseuds/Lizardbeth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The first Christmas at Thunder Mountain.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Just a Chance of Better Days

**Author's Note:**

  * For [neko_chelle (fivefootnothing)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fivefootnothing/gifts).



_I don't need boxes wrapped in strings,   
And designer love and empty things,  
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days._  
\- "Better Days", Goo Goo Dolls

It was well past midnight, and the halls were dim as Markus made his way to his room intending to collapse on his bed. His head pounded, and he was still seeing the schematics for the air compressors every time he closed his eyes, after a frantic few hours fixing one.

His thoughts were somewhat resentful and self-doubting in his tiredness: ... _this isn't supposed to happen. I don't know what I'm doing. I'm the oldest person, except for one, left in the entire fucking world. I never even thought the word 'fucking' until the Big Death, and now I have to consciously not say it because I have to take care of little kids, when I know nothing about taking care of anyone. I'm trying to run this big base practically by myself, and everybody almost died today because I don't know what the hell I'm doing. I'm a physics geek, not an engineer..._

A familiar sound penetrated his awareness. Thinking the air compressor was still broken, he stopped and heaved a sigh, knowing he was going to have to go back and work on it some more.

But the sound had nothing to do with the circulation system. Someone was crying -- a sort of sniffly, soft cry that he'd grown all too accustomed to hearing in these six months. He paused, thinking for a moment he should just ignore it. It wasn't like kids didn't cry all the time, and he was exhausted.

But it turned out he couldn't ignore it even if he'd wanted to, because the little one who was crying was curled up next to his door, as if she'd been waiting for him. He knelt down next to Elizabeth. She had her head down on her arms and she was clutching her knees. "Hey," he said softly, "you should be in bed."

"It's Christmas." She lifted her big, wet eyes and gulped a sobbing breath. "One of the boys said it's Christmas. Is Santa dead, Markus? Did he die, too? Is Christmas all gone?"

He rocked back on his heels. He hadn't been thinking about the days, but he realized it was December 24th now.

Shit, how to answer her? He'd never believed in Santa himself, but the idea that Santa had died of the Big Death was just too sad to contemplate.

"It's just turned over to the 24th," he answered her. "Christmas is the day after that. So it's not here yet."

"And Santa?" she asked. "Santa came to my house last year. He gave me a scooter and my Tianna doll. But now everybody's dead -- "

The tears started rolling down her cheeks again, and he gathered her into his arms as she cried. "Shh, I know," he murmured, patting her back and curly hair. "I know. But we'll do something for Christmas, I promise. I just... I'm sorry, I lost track of what day it was. We'll lay out some cookies for Santa and something for his reindeer--"

"But what if he's dead?" she asked.

"He's not dead," Markus reassured her. "Santa's magic. He exists as long as someone believes in him."

"Then he's going to come here? But we don't have a chimney, and we're underground-- " she objected.

He touched her nose to stop her, thumbed away her tears, and smiled at her. "You think that can stop someone who can make reindeer fly?"

She thought about that for a moment, then shook her head. "No, I guess not." Her little face shone with sudden hope. "Can he bring our parents back?"

Markus swallowed and shut his eyes, taking a deep breath to push away his own grief at the question. Of course she would ask that, because she didn't know and she didn't understand. And now he was going to have to crush that little hope, because keeping it alive would be cruel.

"No, he can't bring back the dead. I wish he could."

She didn't look surprised, just sniffled some more and wiped her nose on her sleeve.

"Come on, let's get you back to your bed before Maxine notices you're gone."

He stood up and took her hand to bring her back to bed, where he tucked her in and kissed her forehead. "Good night, princess Elizabeth," he murmured. "Sleep well."

* * *

In the morning, he woke early to make his plan and then after breakfast, he gathered up Simon, Nathan, Anna, Maxine, and Sarah behind a locked door.

"Tomorrow's Christmas," he announced. "And we're going to celebrate. Do something special. I was thinking we could make cookies and decorate the mess hall today. We won't have afternoon classes."

The others nodded, starting to look enthusiastic. Simon and Sarah volunteered for cookie duty, and the others got the decoration project.

"Then what for Christmas day?" Sarah asked. "We don't have any presents."

"No. We don't," he agreed. "And we can't start that tradition either," he admitted, after a moment. "Things are going to get scarcer. But we can sing songs and be together, and that's what it's about. But, I'd like to do something with Santa."

"There is no such thing as Santa," Nathan said, as belligerent as only an eleven-year-old could be.

"No, there's not," Markus said. "But I want to give the little kids a moment where maybe he does. I want to at least try. I can't give presents, and we don't have a costume, but maybe we can give a little magic and hope."

They all looked at him, doubtful that he could pull it off, but at least they were game to try.

* * * 

"It's a very kind idea, Markus," Meaghan told him when he went to her at lunchtime. "What are you planning to do?"

"I haven't figured that part out yet," he answered, depressed. "What did Santa **do** besides presents? I can't have him bring presents, we don't have enough of anything for that. And I really don't want to encourage getting stuff as being what Christmas is all about. But on the other hand, I need something concrete. I thought of trying to drag in a tree in secret, but I think I'd rather just do that openly--"

Her smile caught his attention and he looked at her. "What?"

"You're over thinking," she pointed out gently. "These kids just want to feel secure that they're still loved and there's someone looking after them. And you are. So let Santa give you an assist that he's looking after them, too. It doesn't have to be something big or dramatic."

"All right," he nodded slowly, trying to think of something. "Thank you."

That night, the cookies were decorated and ready to eat tomorrow. The paper chains were draped all over the cafeteria, and the tree that Simon, Nathan and Maxine had cut and dragged in, was standing, a bit precariously, in the corner.

He had Elizabeth ceremoniously lay a large cookie on a plate and put it on a table beside some straw. "That's for the reindeer," he explained to the curious onlookers, very seriously. "I don't know if they'll come in here, but just in case."

Nathan snickered, and Markus shot a glare at him to shut him up and Maxine stomped on his foot.

Simon played his guitar and they sang Christmas songs, until it was starting to get late.

Markus sat on one of the benches and gathered everyone close in the lowered light. "Some of you have heard this story before," he said, "and some have not, so be very quiet, and I'll tell it as it was told to me.

"_'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse..."_

He recited the whole book from memory and then when it was over, sent everyone to bed.

* * * 

Markus fumbled to shut off the alarm at four o'clock, wondering blearily why the hell he'd wanted to wake up when he felt like he'd just gone to sleep. But then he remembered it was Christmas morning, and he needed to get Santa's surprise ready.

On silent feet, he moved through the dim hallways down to the cafeteria. He'd already eaten half the cookie last night, removed most of the straw, and made a muddy footprint with one of the boots scavenged from one of the dead. So now it was time to put on the string of lights and four shiny balls Anna had found in a closet upstairs from some ancient holiday party. He put the lights on the tree and switched around the bulbs so all the working ones faced front, and hung the four ornaments in the bigger gaps between branches.

With the overheads off, and the tree lights glimmering, it felt like Christmas. Satisfied with his handiwork, he went back to bed, tired but eager to find out how his little trick would be received.

* * * 

"Markus! Markus, wake up!" Elizabeth's piping voice woke him, more than her hand shaking his shoulder.

"What's wrong?" he asked, yawning and forcing his eyes open to look at the clock. It was barely six.

"Nothing's wrong! It's Christmas and Santa was here!" she exclaimed and tugged on his hand. "Come see!"

Relieved there was nothing wrong, he laughed, pleased by her excitement, and teased, "Can I change my pjs first?"

She huffed impatiently. "Hurry!" She barely let him put a sweater on over his t-shirt and shove his feet into his shoes before pulling him out of the room. They were practically running by the time they reached the cafeteria.

He found an excited hubbub of children looking at the cookie and the footprint. Six-year-old Billy pompously informed everyone that it had to be Santa's boot print, because nobody in the mountain had feet that big, and he made Markus put his foot next to it to prove it.

"It certainly does look like it must be Santa," Markus agreed, trying with difficulty to make his tone not sarcastic.

"See, I told you," Billy shot at Raymond, who bit his lip as he looked at Markus as if he suspected Markus had faked it, but he wasn't quite sure. Markus tried not to give it away, returning his look with a shrug and a squeeze of Raymond's shoulder.

Elizabeth pulled him closer to the tree to admire the lights. "It's so beautiful," Elizabeth breathed, still holding his hand. "Isn't it?"

"It is," Markus agreed then he noticed something on the tree up high that hadn't been there before. It was glittering. "What's that?" He reached up to grab it from the highest branch.

"It's a star," Elizabeth told him, when she looked at it in his hand.

Markus frowned at it. She was right. The ornament was an eight-pointed star, as large as his palm, and heavy enough it was probably made of crystal, not glass. The points were prisms, tossing little rainbows around. Where had it come from? He hadn't put it up there, and nobody else was tall enough to put it up there without a chair or ladder.

Holding it in his hand, he turned to look at the other kids, but no one was watching him with any sort of expression that suggested they'd done it. Probably Anna had found it and decided to put it on the tree herself.

With a shrug, he put it back on the tree, hooking it onto the highest branch where a star should go. It gleamed brightly and Markus admired it, until an impromptu chorus of the Batman version of "Jingle Bells" started amid much giggling and pulled his attention away.

In the middle of a rousing game of Duck-Duck-Goose, after he'd let himself get tagged so he'd go into the middle and get dog piled, he glanced at the tree and its brightly shining star caught his eye. And for just a moment, he wondered.... Then, with a smile, he turned back to the kids and pounced on Tessa to toss her in the air. She shrieked and laughed, and the sound was so joyous and bright he was laughing, too.

He'd never expected to end up with any of this, but there was no denying that they were forging a new family here under the mountain, filled with life and love. That had to mean he was doing something right. He couldn't imagine a better gift than that.

 

_end._

(written as an impromptu treat, so please ignore any mistakes I left in there.)


End file.
